"Ah, Ms. Vandergast?"
Gloria's gaze swiveled to the door, where she could see her blonde-haired assistant nervously poking her head in. She hid a grimace at the younger woman's apprehension. No, that wouldn't do at all. If Danni really wanted to make a place for herself in Gloria's burgeoning empire, she would need to straighten up; literally, in this case. "Spine straight!" the chubby chef barked. Danni flinched at first, but quickly obeyed the order and stood up straight so fast that her chest wobbled for a bit. She still looked way too nervous, but at least she wasn't slouching now. Nodding her approval, Gloria gestured Danni to come in.
The buxom blonde was still a little apprehensive, but she spoke with a little more force than the nervous warble Gloria usually attributed to her. Good, she might just make it yet. "I brought the files on the properties you were looking into, Ma'am. I also received a call from Ms. Harker. She said traffic is a lot heavier than she expected, and estimated that she'd be at least an hour late, maybe longer."
Gloria frowned at the second bit of news, which caused Danni to flinch again. Seeing this caused Gloria to sigh; it was no use taking out her frustration on the messenger, she supposed. "Print a second set of files for Nicole to have when she gets here. When you're done with that, start prepping the paperwork for our offers once I make a decision."
"Of course, Ma'am. If you'll excuse me?" With a wave of her hand, Gloria dismissed the younger woman, who left the office as quickly as she could without seeming rude. Gloria, meanwhile, began to peruse the files she'd been given. This was one of her favorite parts of the business; expansion. Every new restaurant up and running was another province in her proverbial empire, and Gloria's ambitions were not yet sated. Sadly, there was only enough money in her coffers to afford to build one new restaurant this time, so she'd need to be careful.
The first location she looked at was at 101 Harbor Road. A scenic spot overlooking the nearby marina, a restaurant built there would have fantastic views of the ocean during the evening, a surefire way to draw in couples looking for a romantic evening. It would also provide a good incentive to renegotiate some contracts Gloria had with her seafood providers; since the property was right by the ocean, it would mean smaller transportation costs to get said seafood from the fishing boats over to the kitchen.
Second in the packet was 62 Newtrail Way. The property was built at the base of a mountain that brought in hikers from around the country, and Gloria was certain that they'd enjoy having a spot to sit down and enjoy a good meal after hours of walking and thin air. At least she assumed so, since Gloria had never been one for hiking herself. The restaurant's view of the mountain might also bring in those who weren't hikers but enjoyed natural scenery to go along with their dinners (that, Gloria did understand).
Next up was 555 Main Street. Instead of the views of nature, this restaurant brought with it command of the city center. Main Street ran from City Hall through the business and shopping districts on into the suburbs, with plentiful highway access throughout. Building a restaurant here might very well attract the attention of the politicians and businessmen who liked to spend big on their meals to impress the various clients, cronies, and yes-men who accompanied them. If someone was going to be receiving those big payouts, why shouldn't it be Gloria Vandergast? She was certain she could actually give them their money's worth when it came to the food.
After that was a spot at Paradigm Plaza. The Plaza was one of the biggest shopping malls in the entire city, and a magnet for youths looking for places to shop, hang out, and generally not be around their parents for as long as possible. If Gloria could hook the next generation and make one of her restaurants the place where they came when they were hungry, she could have a group of customers that kept on coming back for years and years. The tricky part would be finding the proper marketing tactic to appeal to "the youths of today" (Gloria grimaced again. Was she getting old? Surely not!), but she figured she'd figure something out if she needed to.
The last property she wanted to look at was the most unusual by far, being the old Malanor Manor. As the story went, the house had been built by Maximilian Malanor, a businessman who had made his fortune in the railroad boom of the mid-1800s. Then one night, something had gone horribly wrong, and Maximilian and his wife Marianne, both childless, had disappeared. Rumors floated around about how the manor was haunted. Fueling those rumors was the fact that every business that had acquired the property went bankrupt not long after the sale was finalized. Gloria was not a superstitious woman, though. She made her own destiny! And having a restaurant built in a supposedly-haunted house would definitely provide an experience that none of her rivals could come close to offering.
The hardest part about this whole process was the fact that she could only purchase one property at the moment. A part of Gloria was tempted to go into debt to try and snap them all up at once. But she was a student of history, and the Kitchen Boss knew that growing her empire too quickly was a recipe for disaster. No, she'd just stick to the one new property for now.
Eventually Nicole Harker did arrive, still rather miffed about the traffic jam that had delayed her. Her frustration was soon forgotten as the two weighty executives found themselves in a whirlwind discussion about the merits and potential pitfalls of each of the locations. It took the entire morning for them to make a decision, but as they broke for lunch, Gloria knew where the next restaurant in her empire was going to be located.
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